Some people have the strangest perception of middle age. They think all the fun stops when this milestone is reached. I know: my twenty-something kids have told me.

They see my husband and me as fossils without a pulse. They assume our wanderlust has flown the coop. They’re convinced all we care about are early-bird specials and getting to bed at a reasonable hour.

I am here to tell you that that perception is wrong. Middle age is exciting and tons of fun! In fact, I am having more fun now than when I was living it up in my younger years.

Sure, it’s a different kind of fun; but it’s more meaningful fun: richer, deeper, more easily had.

Just the other day, for example, my husband and I had reason to break into our high-tech happy dance. I don’t know about other middle-aged Baby Boomers, but we are not what you would call “tech-savvy.” Truth is, we fumble through most technical set-ups, blindly downloading this and haphazardly deleting that, until – voila! – the thing works. That “thing” recently was a wireless printer. Bravo, we high-fived, before shaking a happy leg.

Lately, we’ve been having a ball whenever we put stuff out by the road with a “FREE” sign on it. Although we donate most to charity, we still have stuff that – though not charity-worthy – someone might want: rotting lawn furniture, bent picture frames, cinder blocks, moldy fish tanks, packing peanuts, etc. So we put these items by the side of the road and then place bets on how fast they will be scooped up. Moldy fish tanks? 10 minutes. I won! Cinder blocks? 5 minutes. Hubby won! Truly, it’s a middle-aged gas-and-a-half.

Another activity that gives us the giggles? Looking under the couch after several months have passed and especially after the holidays. As goofy as this sounds, we get such a kick out of seeing what’s under there, because it’s always a surprise. “Hey, lookee here,” I squealed a few days ago when we upended the couch, “there’s the sock I’ve been looking for for months!” “And guess what I just found?” my husband exclaimed, holding his nose. “Half a cheese sandwich. And to think, we’ve been blaming the dog all this time.”

In conclusion, middle age is full of small pleasures that all add up to big fun.

From snagging a good parking spot to recalling a name to locating a long-lost item in an obscure place, there is no end in sight to the things that make us happy. Plus, all of this fun is free, which is probably the greatest hoot of all. Heh-heh, you know how we fossils love to pinch a penny.